Archived News:

Wednesday, Aug 29, 2012

The Dementium II Website reveals plans for a PC edition of this survival/horror game that's already available for Nintendo DS (thanks Gamer's Hell). Here's word:

With the launch of the new Dementium II website we’ll be keeping you up-to-date on the games projected release date, where you can preorder the game from and the latest news and media associated with the PC version of the game.

Not only have we launched the site today, but we’ve released a handful of screenshots and art. Are you ready to once again face William Redmoor’s nightmare? Or will this be your first time playing Dementium II? Either way, you’re in for a treat.

Stardock announces that preorders are being accepted for Fallen Enchantress, an advance commitment that will earn customers immediate access to the latest beta versions of the upcoming fantasy-themed strategy game. Here's word on the deal and the game:

Stardock announced today that Fallen Enchantress is now available on Steam, GameStop PC Downloads and GamersGate. Customers will gain immediate access to download the latest beta version.

Fallen Enchantress offers PC gamers a chance to experience a unique fantasy world for players to build or destroy as they conquer the land. Players create a sovereign with unique talents and abilities along with a faction to align themselves with in an effort to bring the world under their control. However, the land is not simply waiting to be claimed, it must be conquered. The lands of Elemental are teeming with monsters, bandits and other beings of dread who will not willingly give up their hold on the world. Other factions are pursuing the same agenda at the same time, raising the stakes and deciding the ultimate outcome: who wins and who dies.

"Our engine is definitely portable, it could be operated on many platforms, but that's where our market is," EA Maxis lead producer Kip Katsarelis tells GamesIndustry International speaking about PC gaming. "We're still seeing the PC market is not dead, it's very much alive. Blizzard's shown quite a bit of success with their recent Diablo launch, The Sims is highly successful, so there's a market there, we've got an audience there that wants games on that platform, and we are still a PC house and will continue to be so."

Trion Worlds announces a third closed beta event for End of Nations is coming in two weeks. Signups are being accepted on the End of Nations Website, and here's word:

Trion Worlds today announced that the third highly-anticipated closed beta event for the award winning Free-to-Play online military strategy game End of Nations™ is scheduled to start at 12:01am EST Friday, September 7, and conclude Sunday, September 9 at 11:59pm EST. Participants in the third closed beta event will join the persistent global conflict as they connect with allies from around the world to bring down the oppressive Order of Nations, or take on the opposing faction in epic PVP battles.

The End of Nations development team has been hard at work making significant improvements since the last Beta event, and this time around they’ll debut Elite Companies –pre-configured armies that can be purchased and are built to serve a specific purpose. Elite Companies will be available for both Shadow Revolution commanders and Liberation Front commanders and will be able to be summoned into combat just like other units earned by players over time.

Gamers interested in obtaining access to the Beta events can sign up through the official web site http://endofnations.com/en/beta/. Random keys can be scored with good timing and a little luck via the official End of Nations Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EndofNations) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/endofnations) sites, giving fans another way to get into one of the events. Players who want guaranteed access to the closed Beta and the benefit of more exclusive content and in-game value can already purchase the digital-only End of Nations Founder's Edition direct from Trion or via the exclusive retail partner Green Man Gaming at www.greenmangaming.com. Packed with value, this gives ultimate strategy fans a head start on all of the war time goodness.

Soldak Entertainment offers another pair of new beta patches for Drox Operative, updating the Windows and OS X editions of the action/RPG to version 0.918. Word is: "This patch makes systems more unique and fixes a bunch of small things," and you can find more detail in the patch notes.

This video developer's diary from MechWarrior Tactics discusses the upcoming mech game, "complete with new environmental fly-by’s, the first look at the Mech Bay where you will customize your Mech and meet the team behind this beautiful upcoming turn-based online title." Continue here to read the full story.

Paradox Interactive announcesMarch of the Eagles, a strategy wargame set during the Napoleonic Wars, which they describe as a "geopolitical barfight" conducted by "a Corsican boy." The game is expected early next year and this page is where to sign up between now and September 6th as a potential beta tester, here is a trailer, and here's word:

Raise the regimental banner and beat the drums of war, because the Emperor is calling you back into service with the help of Paradox Interactive and Paradox Development Studio. Announcing “March of the Eagles”, a strategy wargame covering the ten years of the Napoleonic Wars, when a Corsican boy used maddeningly clever new tactics to bring all of Europe to its knees.

Players will take control of any one nation of Europe in this geopolitical barfight, dispatch armies and envoys, raid supply lines, form coalitions and get with the times, already. Because one thing's for sure: Napoleon's Grande Armeé is coming, and he's not interested in second place though he might have to settle for it, if he's just one guy in a 32 person multiplayer battle with set victory conditions.

The NVIDIA Blog has a video of the Unreal Engine 3 running on a tablet under Windows RT and explaining how easily developers will be able to port their Windows and Xbox games. "The Unreal Engine 3-powered ‘Epic Citadel’ demonstration for Windows RT tablets implements our full DirectX 9 pipeline, with shaders and materials, all running beautifully on Tegra 3," said Mark Rein, vice president of Epic Games. "By porting the full engine as opposed to a modified mobile version, NVIDIA and Epic have made it easy for UE3 developers around the world to bring their best content to Windows RT, Windows 8, and NVIDIA’s Tegra 3 processor. Windows RT code is available to licensees from Epic now and we’re excited to see the great games they develop with it." Continue here to read the full story.

The Nyamyam Website offers this trailer and some screenshots from Tengami, an adventure game in the works at this independent developer formed by Phil Tossell and Jennifer Schneidereit, formerly of Rare (thanks Eurogamer). This older preview is of the iPad version, which is due first, as noted in this description:

The name of our first game is Tengami. In Tengami you explore a beautifully paper architected pop-up world, with an art style inspired by traditional Japanese arts and crafts. Tengami is an adventure game, full of wonder and mystery, set in Japan of ancient dark fairy tales. The world is at your fingertips as you manipulate it to solve puzzles and discover secrets. Tengami will be released first on the iPad. In addition a release on iPhone, PC and Mac is planned as well.

An article on Polygon offers an extensive look at Spec Ops: The Line, Yager's recently released third-person shooter set in a windstorm-swept Dubai. This offers a detailed exploration of some of the game's themes (warning of spoilers for those who are yet to play), and hears from lead writer Walt Williams on the topic. An interesting aspect of this noted by VG247 is Williams referring to the game's multiplayer support as "a cancerous growth" forced on them as a checkbox item by publisher 2K Games:

Against Davis' wishes, development on the multiplayer component proceeded and was farmed out to Darkside Studios. The result, according to Davis, was a "low-quality Call of Duty clone in third-person," which "tossed out the creative pillars of the product." "It sheds a negative light on all of the meaningful things we did in the single-player experience," Davis said. "The multiplayer game's tone is entirely different, the game mechanics were raped to make it happen, and it was a waste of money. No one is playing it, and I don't even feel like it's part of the overall package — it's another game rammed onto the disk like a cancerous growth, threatening to destroy the best things about the experience that the team at Yager put their heart and souls into creating."

Manual versions of yesterday's patch for World of Warcraft are now available on The Patches Scrolls where they have painstakingly collected 30 different patches covering Windows and OS X in 15 different languages.

Fusible reports that Lucasfilm Entertainment has filed U.S. Trademark registrations for video games related to Star Wars: First Assault, for which they also recently filed a few domain names (thanks Eurogamer). This covers: "Interactive entertainment software and accompanying instruction manuals sold as a unit, namely, computer game software and manuals sold as a unit, video game software and manuals sold as a unit; video game software, computer game software, and pre-recorded compact discs and DVDs featuring games, films, animation, music, computer game software, and video game software; downloadable video game software and downloadable computer game software; computer game software for use on mobile and cellular phones."

Tonight the Giants preseason concludes with a game against the Patriots, a meaningless rematch of two of the most meaningful NFL games of the past five seasons. Things will be significant again soon, however, as opening day is one week off, and I am greatly looking forward to that. Here's hoping the NFL can settle its labor dispute in the meantime, since the replacement referees have been pretty shaky so far.